Hospital giant fails in bid to swipe nurses’ sick days

[babylonsister]

Monday, Oct 14, 2013 01:24 PM EST
Hospital giant fails in bid to swipe nurses’ sick days
After nine strikes, nurses won the right to keep taking paid sick days rather than spreading disease to patients
By Josh Eidelson


One of the country’s largest and most profitable hospital chains has been defeated in its effort to take away its nurses’ sick days, according to the union that mounted nine strikes there over the past two years.

“The nurses would’ve come to work sick, and the patients’ health would’ve declined,” said California Nurses Association Executive Director RoseAnn DeMoro. “Because the nurses would be exposing current patients to the past patients’ illnesses.” While nurses “take the risk of being around very sick people,” DeMoro told Salon, they “are not super-women.”

According to CNA, eliminating paid sick days was one of nearly 200 concessions sought by California healthcare giant Sutter Health, in negotiations over union contracts covering 3,000 nurses and hundreds of other employees at central California hospitals. Others included eliminating health coverage for nurses who work less than 30 hours a week, and reducing — to 6 hours — nurses’ minimum time off between shifts. The union says it defeated virtually all of the concessions in new contracts, which were approved by members in votes that ended last week. CNA notes that Sutter financial statements show more than $4 billion in profit since 2005.

more...

http://www.salon.com/2013/10/14/hospital_giant_fails_in_bid_to_swipe_nurses_sick_days/

[Sheldon Cooper]

1. 6 hours between shifts???

Are they trying to kill people? Any nurse who works a full shift and is expected back for another one a mere six hours later is a hazard to the health and welfare of their patients. Any idiot should be able to figure that out.

[darkangel218]

3. Thats insane.

I'm only in my clinicals, and I need at least 12 hours between shifts, just so I won't collapse on the floor.

6 hours between shifts is illegal.

[Spider Jerusalem]

2. The USA needs statutory leave for workers.

Workers in Japan and China get statutory paid time off from work. And almost every other country. And in most cases sick days are deducted from your annual leave allowance. The US is the only industrialised country that doesn't do this.

[gopiscrap]

4. Good...there is a campaign in Tacoma Washington

all those working in the city must have a minimum number of paid sick leave provided by the employer and of course our corporate whore of a city paper came out against it.

[Scuba]

5. It's irresponsible for Sutter's administration to expose patients to sick staff. Dismiss them.